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Tuesday, December 31, 2013

It is hard to believe that another year has passed. I find, as I get older, that time passes faster and faster. I don't feel like I have slowed down but rather the world is moving quicker. I guess this is natural.

Anyway, I played lots of games this year and had high hopes back in January. As usual, what I thought I would be doing this year might not match too closely with what I actually did. Let's take a closer look...you know you want too.

Bolt Action

I predicted back in January that this would a be a big game this year and it was. I got in about 15 games making it the number two game for me this year. I also managed to paint some more figures for my Fallschirmjager army. I bought some Perry plastic 8th Army figures, but you know how that turned out. I managed to collect all but the Japanese book as well.

It was a good year for this game and I expect that will continue.

Flames of War

It is not too surprising to me that this is, once again, the main game for the year. I managed to get in a couple of dozen games. This included a El Guettar campaign that Tim and I played. This ran from February to June and consisted of about 10 games. I also played in my second FoW tournament.

I had no solid plans for new armies at the beginning of the year. I knew I wanted to work on my early war French but I was not sure how that was going to actually happen. In the end I did get an EW French force painted but it was a Tank Company rather than the Fusilier Company I had planned. I did acquire lots of new models for the French and I will be adding more to it in the future.

What was a complete surprise to me was the US Tank Company. This was not on my radar at all in January but by February I was on my way to getting this on the table. I also purchased lots of additional models to expand this into an Infantry and Armored Infantry force.

In July I decided that I wanted to participate in a Kursk themed event in January 2014. FOr this event I am taking a 1500 point Panther Company that I just finished painting today (pictures next year).

So, I painted three new armies and added a bunch of models to the paint queue. It was a good year for this game.

Black Powder

At the beginning of the year the goal for this game was to build on our first big game from last year. We managed to put on two more large ACW games. I also painted more figures for my ACW collection. In addition, I managed to assemble and start paint for my Napoleonic French project. In the end it was a good year for Black Powder but I was hoping to get more going with this one.

28mm Ancients

The goal for this was to get in some games of Clash of Empires and/or Hail Caesar. I played in three games of HC - on with 28mm armies and 2 with 15mm armies. I had a really good time playing the games but I quickly discovered that the rules are not a simple expansion/modification of Black Powder. I really need to spend more time with the rules to a solid grip on them. This is a game that will get more attention from me in the future.

I did get in a couple of games of SAGA and really enjoyed it. I picked up the rules and one of the expansions over the summer. I am hoping to get deeper into this game.

Clash of Empires is fading fast. I did nothing with these rules this year.

Warhammer 40K

I really expected, at the beginning of the year, to get in a few games this year. I knew the new purchases would be very limited. It turns out I did almost nothing with this this year. I painted one model and added very little to the collection/paint pile (all used). It seems this game has reached retirement for me. I will keep what I have and probably add new models if they are really cool but otherwise it is over.

Other Games

I kept the door open for something new to come along or perhaps the return of an old favorite this year. I did struggle a bit with the Hobbit/LOTR throughout the year but the prices (even for used) kept pushing me back. I would like to have added some of the new Eagles to the collection but it did not happen.

One new game did appear this year - Star Wars X-Wing. I finally picked up the starter set over the summer and got in a few games using the quick start rules. I really enjoyed it and I got lots of new stuff for Christmas. I see a bright future for me and this game. It is just an amazing well designed and supported game.

Other Hobbies

My New Years post this year was different in that I discussed some of my other hobbies and the hope that I would spend some time on them throughout the year. As fate would have it most of it was a wash. The only area that went well as the guitar stuff. I was able to purchase a new guitar this year and I got into Rocksmith on the PS3. I also spend some time upgrading my songbook library.

There it is. All things considered a good year for gaming. Next year should. hopefully, be even better! Happy New Year everyone!

Friday, December 27, 2013

I just finished a few Russian houses for Flames of War. These are for a table I am contributing to the Shifting Sands 2014 Kursk event to be held in January.

The buildings are your typical resin game pieces that we are all familiar with. I have no idea who the manufacturer of these building is but they are very nicely done. Each building has a detailed interior. The casting is clean with only a few bubbles or other flaws. Nothing worth worrying about at 15mm.

This is just a start on my Eastern front collection which will be growing. I have big plans for this theater next year.

UPDATE: After doing a little research I found out that these are Musket Miniatures buildings. They have a pretty nice line of Russian stuff and I think I will be adding more of these to the collections.

Thursday, December 26, 2013

Christmas was pretty good on the game front this year. I received a second starter set of X-Wing as well as several expansions. In fact, I am missing only the wave one releases now and I plan to fix that next week. All of this stuff and my original starter set means I can finally get into the game properly. Next year should see lots of X-Wing on the table. The family likes this one so I should be able to play it quite a bit.

Monday, December 9, 2013

Most interest in the game world about the new 3D print technology has been around the creation of game models and the IP issues that might come up. I wonder what gaming will be like when gamers can print there own dice? How easy will it be to abuse the technology in order to gain an advantage. Will players not want to play against others unless they know where there dice came from?

Then there are the games that have been retired. Not all of these are bad. In fact some are really great. The reasons for retirement are varied.

Wings of Glory

Kings of War

The Great WarEmpire of the DeadClash of EmpiresLord of the Rings:SBGWarhammer Ancient BattlesBattleground World War 2Arc of FireJohnny Reb IIICrossfireRules of EngagementRate of FireLegends of the High SeasNecromundaWaterlooLegends of the Old West